Holding Out For a Hero
by donna79
Summary: Jacob and Bella have been best friends since they were kids and things have always been platonic between them. What happens when something happens that makes them both question the feelings for each other?
1. The Calm Before the Storm

**Story Title: Holding Out for a Hero**

**Summary: Jacob and Bella have been best friends since they were kids and things have always been platonic between them. What happens when something happens that makes them both question the feelings for each other?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.**

**AN: I got the idea for this earlier this week and I figured that I might as well see how it goes. It should only be a few chapters long so things should move pretty quickly.**

It wasn't every day that Bella Swan got a phone call that left her completely at a loss for words. Why in the world would her ex-finacee's adoptive mother call her saying that it was urgent that she get in touch with her as soon as possible? Bella hadn't talked to anyone from Edward's family in over two years which was really hard to believe since they all lived in the same small town. She saw Esme occasionally but she always gave her the space that she had requested. She missed the Cullen's terribly but it had been best to cut ties with all of them instead of just Edward when she had found out about his infidelity.

The only mainstay in Bella's life male wise other than her dad was her best friend Jacob. Their parents had been trying to push them together for years but he was like a little brother to her. Okay, so he was over a foot taller than her and outweighed her by nearly a hundred pounds but she did have eighteen months on him. He was her confidant and voice of reason when she had guy problems as long as they hadn't pertained to Edward. Jacob and Edward had never gotten along since Edward saw Jacob as a threat and Jacob thought that Edward wasn't good enough for his best friend.

It would be best to get the phone call out of the way that way Bella just in case something had happened to one of Edward's siblings or God forbid Carlisle. She leaned against the counter as the phone rang. Her feet were crossed and one foot jiggled nervously as she waited for Esme to pick up.

"Bella?" Esme asked picking up on the second ring.

"Hello Esme," Bella said politely.

"Thank goodness I was able to get your number from Charlie," she said with a sigh.

Her own father had sold her out? They were going to have a serious conversation when she saw him again.

"What exactly did you need to talk to me about?"

"I wouldn't call unless it was important. You see, the Valentine's auction is coming up for the hospital," she explained.

Bella had almost forgotten about it. Every year the hospital would auction off dates with the most eligible bachelors and bachelorettes from the city and every year the paper that she worked for would write an article about it.

"Special interest stories aren't my department Esme, but I can give you the number of the person who can help you," she offered.

"Oh no, I don't want you to write the article, we already have someone for that. Carlisle and I would like you to be a part of the auction," she said gently.

"Why? Shouldn't you be asking the boys or Alice?" Bella asked confused.

"Well, Emmett lives out of state as you know I would ask Alice but she recently got engaged."

"What about Edward?"

"He already said no. Please, Bella? You'd really be helping Carlisle and I out if you do this. The money would be going to a good cause," Esme reminded her.

Esme always knew exactly what to say to get Bella agree with whatever she wanted. Bella conceded against her better judgment and called Jacob as soon as she hung up with Esme.

"Black," he said answering the phone.

"Swan!" she said, greeting him with a laugh.

_He must still be at work._ She thought to herself.

"Yes, I know Bells. I do have caller ID," he said, his voice laced with sarcasm.

"Are you busy?"

"Not really, I'm just getting ready to close up. What's going on?"

"You are never going to guess who I just talked to and what they wanted. I can't believe that I agreed to what they asked me to do."

"Who'd you talk to? What did they want?"

"I just got off the phone with Esme," she said with a huff.

"No shit?" he said with a grunt.

"I am dead serious. You are talking to an upstanding bachelorette of Forks," she said, sounding distinguished.

"Please tell me that you are fucking kidding. Why would you agree to be part of 'the cattle call'?" he questioned, his voice raised in frustration.

"Because Emmett and Alice couldn't?" she asked feebly.

"Get out of it, use any possible excuse you can," he warned.

"Jake come on, don't you think that you're being a little dramatic?"

"You actually want guys bidding on you like you're a piece of meat? Come on Bells, that's not you."

"I know it's not, but it's only one date. Who knows? I just might meet Mr. Right."

"More like Mr. Right Now," he muttered.

"I heard that, and I don't need your snarky comments. I called hoping that I could share my amusement with my best friend but apparently that is just too much to ask of you. I'll call you later," she said with a scoff before hanging up on him.

Jacob's attitude was not what she needed right now. Right now also was not the time to call her dad because she would just take her frustration out on him. What was Jacob's problem anyway? He'd never cared what she had done with her life before so why would this be any different? Didn't he trust her judgment? She growled in frustration before reaching into her fridge for the bottle of wine that she kept there. She poured herself a healthy portion before going into her living room and flinging herself onto the couch and resting her feet on the coffee table.

She rested her head against the back of the couch content to sulk in silence. She had been taking care of herself just fine for the three years since she moved out on her own after college and she didn't need Jacob telling her what to do. He sudden mood swing wasn't like him at all. Even when she had been with Edward he hadn't talked to her like that. He had backed every decision she made in her life without fail. Why was this one any different? What harm could it do to go out on one date? Did he expect her join a nunnery? Become celibate? She was so mad at him that she could spit nails.

XXXX

It had been three days since Bella had talked to Jacob and she still din't know what to make of the phone call from hell. After taking the night to calm down she had gone to see Charlie at work the next day and gave him a firm talking to about giving Esme her number. He had been apologetic but glad that Bella was willing to help out the Cullens. He didn't like that she wasn't speaking to Jacob. They two of them had been best friends since before Jacob could talk in full sentences and he didn't think that the argument they'd had was worth tossing out twenty years of friendship. He agreed that Bella should give Jacob some time to cool down before trying to contact him. He hated that there was a rift between them and he thought that a visit to La Push on his next day off was in order. It was time that he stepped in and talked some sense into Jacob.

Bella was working on an article that under deadline when her phone rang. She sighed, wishing that the phone in her office had caller ID. Whoever it was must not have her cell number. She reached for the phone, the fingers of her free hand flying over the keys rapidly.

"Isabella Swan," she answered professionally.

"Bella," A deep voice that she knew so well greeted.

"Hey Billy, why are calling my work line?" she asked, cradling the phone on her shoulder so that she could continue typing.

"Jake told me about the conversation you two had a few days ago. I'm not saying that I agree with his actions by any means but you and I both know that he didn't mean a single word of what he said."

"Has Jake suddenly gone mute?"

"No, he hasn't."

"Then why does he need you to apologize for him?"

"Because we both know that it's going to have to be you who makes the first move. That boy is so stubborn that he'll never be the first to apologize."

"I hate to to admit it but you have a point," she said with a sigh.

"Cut him some slack Bells. He was only trying to look out for you in his own hostile, weird way."

Bella sighed because once again Billy was right. Jacob was known for spouting off at the mouth and then regretting it later. He had been smart to get his dad to act as mediator. She'd go by and see him after work and lay the groundwork for smoothing things over. She hung up and went back to work because she had less than an hour before her article on a new food store in Port Angles was due.

She loved working for the Gazette, the only paper in Forks as it's lifestyle reporter. She mainly wrote about restaurant and store openings and the occasional food related article which suited her just fine. One of the perks of her job was that she could be choosy about what she wrote because she wasn't the only lifestyle reporter on the payroll.

An hour later she was packing up her things for the day and she had texted Jacob to make sure that he didn't have plans for the night. It had taken him almost half an hour to reply back, and he had been vague when he told her that he'd be working late. She swung by his favorite fast food place before heading to his garage. Embry's car was parked next to Jake's bike and Quil's truck was on the other side of Embry. She shook her head, hoping that the two of them didn't give her any trouble when she asked them to leave.

She walked to the back to find Jacob's office door open and the three friends were gathered around his beat up desk that Bella had bought him when he first decided to open the shop with Quil. She stood at the door but none of them took notice so she cleared her throat, Jacob being the one to look up first. Embry looked over his shoulder next and tapped Quil's shoulder who was still watching a video on Jake's computer.

"Get up stupid," Embry said, pulling Quil up by the collar of his shirt.

"Man, lay off," Quil argued.

They got their stuff together silently and Embry kissed Bella's cheek as he passed and Quil patted her shoulder before following Embry out the door. Jacob remained silent as Bella sat across from him, placing the bag of food on the desk and reaching in and doling out his tacos and burrito. She twisted the top off of his beer for him before handing it over and he stared at her questioningly.

"Ya know, it's normal procedure to thank someone when they bring you dinner," she said, digging into her taco salad.

"My dad called you, didn't he?"

"Is that all you have to say to me?"

"You're right, I'm sorry. Thank you for dinner."

"Why are you here so late?"

"I had planned on having a guys night and we were about to leave when you came in," he explained.

"Oh," she said quickly.

"They'll get over it. Trust me, they'll go see Furious 7 movie without me."

"We can go and see it Sunday, I know how much you wanted to see it."

"Sure," he said with a nod.

"Are you over your temper tantrum?"

"Yes Bella, even though I still don't agree with what you're doing."

"I'm only doing it as a favor to Carlisle and Esme."

"That's the only reason?"

"Yes," she answered honestly.

"You know I'll be there right? Feeding out the losers and telling everybody that will listen how amazing you are."

"You don't have to," she said with a shake of her head.

"It's not like I've got anything better to do. Maybe I'll find myself a date for Valentine's Day."

"Don't forget your checkbook but cash is better," she said with a small smile.

He shook his head, not able to hold back his laughter. He knew that Bella never did anything without having a valid reason but he still worried that this decision could backfire on her and she would have no way to recover from it.


	2. Something Wicked this Way Comes

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Twilight.**

It was the day before the auction and Bella still hadn't gotten one thing she wanted to accomplish done. She wanted to buy a new dress and shoes and get her hair done the day of but she had forgotten to call and set up an appointment and now it was too late. She would have to call her friends Jessica and Angela and see if maybe they could help her with her hair and her makeup. She took a personal day to go shopping since none of the dresses she had would work.

Edward's sister, Alice, who had been her best girl friend before Bella had severed ties with Edward had called and Bella found it hard to get off the phone with her after not talking to her for two years. They had both broken down and Bella promised to not shut Alice out again no matter what the situation. Alice met her at the mall in Port Angeles and deemed herself Bella's personal stylist for the day. They went to store after store and hadn't found anything that either of them thought would work.

After getting lunch Alice was able to talk Bella into going to a few more stores and in the last store they went to Alice saw a dress that she said would knock the socks off any guy who saw Bella in it. It was a black knee length chiffon cocktail dress with a sweetheart neckline and it fit Bella like a glove. Alice had been able to talk Bella into wearing a pair of heels but only if she was able to give them to Angela after the auction since she would more than likely never wear them again.

Jessica and Angela agreed to come over Saturday morning and were happy to find out that Alice would be coming over as well. The two had been on Bella's side from the beginning but had missed their friend terribly. The four of them had been friends since middle school, long before Edward had sunken his fangs into Bella and made her believe that he was someone he wasn't.

Alice talked animatedly about her fiancee and upcoming wedding. His name was Jasper and he worked at the ranch where Alice took riding lessons. Alice had chosen to go to college closer to home than her brothers had and had gone to the University of Oregon and still lived there, only coming home for holidays and birthdays.

"It's so good to be around the three of you again. I don't hardly have any girlfriends in Portland," Alice said with a sigh.

"Tell me about it, I was in man land when I went to UDub. My graduating class had maybe a dozen girls and over a hundred guys," Jessica retorted.

"NYU had a lot more students than that but there were more guys than girls," Bella informed them.

"Lets face it, it might be a guys world right now but us girls are about to change the whole game," Angela affirmed.

The girls all agreed and it wasn't long before Bella was ready. Alice was the first to leave after promising to come over with Jasper before they went back to Oregon. Just before Bella was about to leave she saw a car pull into the driveway that she didn't know. She watched from behind the curtains of her kitchen window as Edward got out of the car looking just as gorgeous as ever. His copper hair was shorter than when she had seen him last, shaved to fuzz on the sides and back and styled on top. He took off his silver lensed aviators as he walked up the walk way to the door. She booked it to the door, beating him by seconds.

"What are you doing here?" she asked coldly.

"I thought that you might need a ride," he said smoothly, his smile easy.

"Not from you I don't. How did you find out where I lived?"

"I asked around. Turns out Mike Newton's tongue is pretty loose once you get a couple of beers in him."

"Remind me to thank him," she said rolling her eyes.

"I thought that we could put the past behind us," he said reaching out to stroke her arm.

"It's going to take a lot more than a few sweet words for me to forget what you put me through. You're not wanted here," she said pushing past him once she closed the door and locked up.

She left him standing there and spun her tires as she pulled out, kicking up dust and rocks as she pulled around his car. She smiled smugly, hoping that she had done some damage to his precious Volvo. How dare he show up at her house! Who did he think he was? She wasn't the naive twenty-one year old that she had been when she had broken things off with him nearly three years ago. She had done a lot of growing up and maturing since then and she was not going to be fooled by him again.

She arrived at The Lodge half an hour early like Esme had asked her to and signed in before going back to the employees lounge where all of the other suckers who had gotten roped into being auctioned off were gathered. She saw a few people she knew but most of the small crowd were from out of town. She talked with Tyler Crawley, wondering how no girl had managed to convince him to throw in his single card. Out of all of her guy friends from school he had been the nicest and most shy around girls, she hoped that the girl he ended up could handle that.

Esme came in a few minutes before the show was to start to give everyone a rundown of what was going to happen and give them a list of who was going when. Bella would be near the end so she was stuck in the room for the next hour and a half with nothing to do. Esme left and everyone started to talk amongst themselves once more as people started to file out in groups of five. The door opened but Bella didn't notice anyone had entered until the person sat next to her. Edward's cologne filled her nose making her tense and nervous.

"We got off on the wrong foot earlier. I didn't mean any harm, I promise," he said soothingly.

"Thank you for the apology but could you please leave me alone?" she asked with all the niceness that she could muster.

"I thought that we might go out for a drink later," he offered.

"Did you not hear me? Please go," she said, her eyes pleading.

"Leave her alone, man. She doesn't want anything to do with you," Tyler said from across the room.

Everyone else watched with mild curiosity as Edward placed his hands on his knees before standing. He cast Tyler a venomous look before exiting the room.

"You okay, Bella?" Tyler asked.

"I'm fine. Thank you," she said with a nod.

"What a douche bag," Tyler said under his breath.

It was another fifteen minutes before Bella's group was escorted back down the hall leading to the dining room. No one that she knew was in her group and Tyler had given her a reassuring look before she walked out of the room. Esme talked about the person who was on the stage on the other side of the curtain but it sounded like back ground noise, barely registering to Bella at all. Someone pushed her forward and held open the curtain for her, she blinked twice adjusting to the light as Esme gestured politely for her to come closer.

Jacob's heart skipped a beat as he took her in. That had never happened before. Her hair was swept up into a french twist with a few tendrils framing her face showing off her neck which he had never realized was so beautiful. The only jewelry she wore was a diamond necklace that he knew for a fact didn't belong to her. He stared at her in wonder as he tried to keep his new found emotions in check. Why had he never seen her this way before? Why now all of the sudden?

"Here we have Isabella Swan. Her hobbies include cooking, reading and long walks on the beach. The bidding will start at fifty dollars."

Bella's eyes scanned the crowd looking for Jacob. She had been required to turn off her phone once she had entered the employee lounge and he hadn't texted her to let her know if he was coming for sure or not. She found him along with a group of their friends in the second row of tables. His eyes made contact with hers as she heard Esme continue to call out to the people who were bidding. When the bids had reached two hundred dollars she started to search the crowd to see who was bidding. It wasn't any surprise that Mike was among the five men bidding. She hoped to God that he would run out of money soon. Edward's paddle was raised after he called out a bid of five hundred dollars. Carlisle tried to reason with his son but Edward would not be deterred. Her eyes flitted back to Jacob, they were a mix of anger, aggravation and fear.

Jacob couldn't see the person who had placed the five hundred dollar bid but obviously Bella wasn't happy about it.

"Did anybody see who that was?" he asked in concern.

Embry feigned a stretch in his seat since he was closest to the stage and sat back in his seat quickly.

"You're not gonna like it," he warned.

"Who was it?"

"It was Cullen."

"You've gotta be kidding me," Jacob said with a growl.

"We've gotta do something, quick. Jake how much money do you have?" Jared said quickly

"Not as much as he has," Jacob said with a heavy sigh.

"How much?" Jared asked again.

Jacob pulled his wallet out and counted out six hundred dollars.

"Six hundred," he called, thrusting his paddle into the air before Esme could get to three.

"Everybody pool your money in," Embry said, pulling out his own wallet.

Everyone did as he asked without question and he counted the money quickly as Edward put in another hundred dollar bid. Embry held up three fingers to let Jacob know that he had already counted three hundred dollars.

"Nine hundred," Jacob called, his paddle in the air once more.

Sam and Seth picked up handfuls of money but no one noticed that Jared was glaring at Paul who gave him a look that even instilled terror into Quil at times.

"I know you've got money in your shoe. Pull it out," Jared commanded.

"You're holding out on us?" Sam said, his head flying up, giving Paul an accusatory look.

"That money is to buy a ring for Rachel," Paul said, his lips forming a hard line.

"I'll give you my mom's engagement ring," Jacob promised.

"What the hell are you doing with your mom's engagement ring?" Embry asked.

"Dad gave it to me a few years ago. If you give me the money the ring is yours."

Paul huffed and puffed, grumbling as he reached down to pull off his shoe. Edward bid another hundred and as Seth put in his stack of cash.

"That's only a hundred," he said with a sigh.

"I'm up to two hundred so far," Sam said still counting.

Where in the hell had his friends come up with this kind of cash? Jacob shook his head, dismissing the thought as he upped the bid to fourteen hundred. Paul slammed his money down on the table making the beer bottles rattle.

"It's five hundred," he said darkly.

"Would you chill? Rach is gonna like having something that belonged to Sarah more than anything you could have picked out," Jared chided.

Edward bid fifteen hundred and Jacob's eyes went to the stage. Bella stared at him, giving him a pleading look. She had never looked at him like that before. He had to do something.

"Sixteen hundred," Jacob called out.

"I see that paddle Sir, thank you very much," Esme said with a pleased smile.

"Seventeen," Edward said quickly.

"Two hundred more and that's it," Embry said with a sigh.

"I can get another hundred from the ATM. Add it," Jared said leaving the table quickly

"Two thousand," Jacob countered.

"Not all at once man, jeeze," Quil said, his eyes wide.

Carlisle stood abruptly, his hand firmly on Edward's arm, pulling him through the aisles.

"He should have done that five bids ago," Quil said, rolling his eyes.

"Two thousand going once, two thousand going twice...Sold to paddle number one nineteen," Esme said, banging her gavel loudly and Bella heaved a sigh of relief.

"How is this going to work? What are we going to get out of this exactly? 'Cause Leah is not going to be happy when she finds out that I just handed over four hundred dollars so that Bella wouldn't have to go out on a date with Cullen," Sam questioned

"I say we get her to make us dinner," Quil offered.

"Yeah, she has to make us whatever we want," Paul agreed with a nod.

"Jake should at least get a date out of it. I mean he was the one who started it," Seth said, adding in his two cents.

"I think it should be Em, he's the one who came up with the idea to put our money together," Jake said, shaking head.

"You should get to go out with Bells as long as she wants to," Embry disagreed with Jacob.

Jacob looked up to the stage to see that Bella was already gone. He gathered the money together and went to the table where the money was being collected to turn it in. Jared met him there, out of breath from running across the street to the ATM. Bella was coming out a side door when he turned around to make his way back to their friends. She beckoned him over with a finger and he walked the short distance to her without thinking twice.

She tucked a stray hair behind her ear, shifting nervously from foot to foot when he finally stood in front of her.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"Did you honestly think that I would let him win?" he asked, his voice low.

"I know, but thank you just the same. I can give you and the boys the money back," she offered.

"No, they don't want their money back," he said with a shake of his head.

"What did you have to promise them to get them to do it?"

"I have to give Paul my mom's engagement ring and there was talk about you making dinner," he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"Steak, Porter House," Quil said coming up behind Jacob.

Bella laughed before nodding in agreement.

"Why stop there? I want twice baked potatoes," Jared added.

"Pie," Paul quipped.

"Beer, and lots of it," Seth said joining the conversation.

"Do you have anything special that you want Sam?" Bella asked the older man.

"Garlic knots would be awesome."

"Steak, potatoes, beer, apple pie and garlic knots. Y'all aren't asking for a lot. And what about you?" she questioned, looking up at Jacob.

"He gets to go on a date with you," Seth informed her.

"It's the least you can do. He did save you from going out with the Spawn of Satan," Embry reminded her.

"What can I do for you?" she asked Embry.

"I don't need anything," he said with a shake of his head.

"Are you sure?"

Embry nodded with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. She knew exactly what she could do for him. She was going to need to give two of her closest friends the nudge that she had been meaning to give them for the five years that they had known each other. It was the least she could do. The others left leaving Jacob and Bella alone. They stood there awkwardly letting silence fall over them.

She couldn't believe that he had actually done it. She knew that he wouldn't like what was Edward was doing but that was not how she thought things would turn out. She had half expected Jacob to yank Edward out of his seat and drag him outside for the beating of his life. She looked at him out of the corner of her to find him staring at her with a faraway look.

"What?" she asked cautiously.

"You look really nice," he said with a shy smile.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"We don't have to go out on a date if you don't want to."

"That would mean that all the work that you and the boys did was for nothing," she disagreed.

"I can think of something else that you can do to pay me back."

"I am not cleaning your house or the garage. I will not stoop that low," she said giving him a pointed look.

"Then you leave me with no other choice. Bella Swan, will you go out on a date with me?" he asked with a easy smile.

"Don't make a joke about it," she said, rolling her eyes.

"I am dead serious," he said with raised eyebrows.

"One date?"

"One date."

"Okay," she said with a nod.

"Can you leave now that you're done?"

"Yeah, it's almost over anyway."

She went to get her things from the lounge and Jacob waited for her by the front door. They walked through the parking lot side by side, Jacob taking her hand so that she could navigate the parking lot in her heels. It wasn't out of the ordinary for them to hold hands but was out of the normal was the warmth that spread through Bella's stomach just by touching him. Somehow in the course of the last hour they had passed the fine line between friends and more than friends.

She couldn't explain it, but tonight she had seen a side of him that she had never noticed before. His smile seemed a little warmer, his eyes shined a tad bit brighter. What had changed things? Could she really have developed feelings for him after all these years of being friends? They were going to need to sort their feelings out before they moved forward.

He leaned against her car as she unlocked her car and opened the door. The door was a barrier between them as she leaned against it with her arms resting on the frame. He looked down at her, not wanting to leave her. He drummed his fingers on the frame on either side of her arms, his eyes searching her face.

"I should go, I've got some research to do for an article and I still need to go grocery shopping for my dad tomorrow."

"I can do the grocery shopping for you. I've gotta go anyway for my dad," he offered.

"You don't mind?"

"I'll call Charlie in the morning to let him know."

She put her hands over his to stop his nervous tick.

"Thank you," she said, her eyes finally meeting his.

"Come by the house tomorrow? I'll make dinner."

"That's our date? You making me dinner?" she asked, her eye brows raised in intrigue.

"No. I still haven't figured that out. Once I do, you'll be the first to know. So, dinner tomorrow night?"

"I guess that I can fit you into my schedule," she said, rolling her eyes dramatically.

"Oh thank you. You are too kind," he said with a wry smile.

"See you tomorrow," she said pushing away from the door.

She stepped to the side so that she was within his reach and he pulled her to him. She hugged him, letting him hold her as tight as he dared and the hug lingered for longer than she intended. He was the one who pulled away first, kissing her forehead before stepping away from the car. He watched her drive away, standing where he was long after she had driven off. Where were things headed for them? Did his feelings for her run deeper than he had originally thought? Did she feel the same way? So many questions swirled through his mind. He would get his answers when she came over, he wouldn't let her leave until he was satisfied with the answers she gave him.


	3. Standing in Front of You

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, never have and I never will. I also do not own the song that this chapter is based on. Standing in Front of You belongs to Kelly Clarkson and the people who wrote it and her record label.**

**AN: I have never been to any of the places mentioned in this chapter. I would love to thank the geniuses who thought up Google so that people like me can gather information whenever they need it. I use it almost daily and I don't know what I would do without it.**

The week after the auction passed slowly and Bella found it hard to find time for herself. Dinner at Jacobs on Sunday had been nice and the conversation between them was as easy as it always had been but something had changed, that was undeniable. She was having a hard time putting her feelings for Jacob into coherent words. She blushed like a teenager every time she had thought about him in an inappropriate way which was surprisingly often, more often than she would have liked. She still hadn't figured out why these feelings had come to the surface now, after all the years that they had known each other. Yes, she thought that he was attractive; any woman with eyes and half a brain could see that.

Her friendship with Jacob had changed drastically since Saturday. He found subtle ways to touch her, his hugs lasted a little longer. She found it easy to flirt with him and little by little she was starting to see him in a different light. By Friday she was mentally counting down to their date. He wouldn't tell her what they were doing only that she should dress casual. Friday nights were usually her and Jacob's night to have dinner with their dad's at Charlie's and she was looking forward to seeing him after only talking to him on the phone since Monday.

Jacob's bike was absent when she pulled up to her dad's but she didn't think anything of it. _He probably got held up at the garage, _she thought to herself as she walked up the walkway leading to the house. Charlie and Billy were already engrossed in a Super Sonics game so she left them alone while she started dinner. Jacob still hadn't shown up by the time dinner was ready an hour later. Billy called out to her as she was setting the table to get her attention.

"Don't set a place for Jake. He said he had something that he had to do tonight," he cautioned.

Well that explained why he hadn't shown up yet, it wasn't like him not to at least text her if he wasn't going to show up. She let it roll off her back as she called the other two men in her life to dinner. They talked idly through dinner, Charlie peppering her with questions about her week and laughed at the story Billy told her about catching Paul trying to sneak out of Rachel's house one morning that week.

"You never did tell me how the auction went last weekend," Charlie broached.

"I didn't?" she asked perplexed. Surely Billy would have mentioned something about it since she knew for a fact that Jacob had told him everything.

"Nope. I read in the paper that a couple of guys got in a bidding war over somebody. They didn't give a name though," he said with a shrug.

The front door opened and Bella leaned back in her seat to see Jacob stomping snow off of his boots by the front door. She heaved a sigh of relief as he toed off his boots and hung his jacket on to the coatrack by the door.

"It wasn't too traumatizing. Edward was there and thought that he could buy his way back into my life," she said, looking down at her hands.

"I set him straight didn't I?" Jacob said pulling up a seat across from her.

"Yes, you did. You and all your friends," she said with a small smile.

"Huh?" Charlie asked confused.

"I couldn't let Edward get away with what he was doing. My whole table pooled our money together and we outbid him."

"So you have to go out with all of them?" Charlie asked, setting his fork on his plate.

"No, Dad, just Jake," she said with a nervous laugh.

"She's gotta make dinner for everybody else," Jacob informed him.

"Did you know about this?" Charlie asked Billy.

"Jake told me Sunday when he came over," he said with a nod.

"Why didn't you tell me this sooner?" Charlie asked, focusing his confusion on Bella.

"Because I wanted to tell you in person. This is the first chance I've had all week."

"I guess that I can understand that."

The conversation was dropped and Bella felt Jacob nudge her leg with his foot making her look up. She met his eyes with question and he smiled reassuringly.

"Have you eaten yet, son?"

"I had a meeting earlier and I ate then," he assured Billy.

Bella raised an eyebrow in question and he shook his head, letting her know not to worry about it. Dinner was over a few minutes later and Charlie and Billy retreated to the living room and the game was turned back on. Jacob cleared off the table while Bella filled the sink with soap and water in silence. After she had put the food away he washed dishes and she dried and put away. They continued to work in silence until Bella couldn't take the silence anymore.

"I didn't know that you had a meeting today," she said to break the ice.

"I'm trying to get a loan so that I can expand the garage. I met with Leah after work and since it was getting late she was nice enough to feed me," he said with a shrug.

"Did you get everything done?"

"I still have some paperwork to sign once Leah draws it up but other than that I should know in a couple of weeks."

"Why didn't you tell me that you were thinking of expanding the garage?"

"It was just an idea I had. I was going to tell you once the loan went through."

"And if it hadn't?"

"Then I would have thought of another way to get the money and I would have told you then," he promised.

"Okay," she said, letting the subject go.

"Once we're done, do you want to maybe go for a walk?"

"A walk?"

"I know how much you like to walk through the forest when it's snowing," he said, nudging her side with his elbow.

"I didn't bring proper shoes," she said, shaking her head regretfully.

"I know that you have a couple pair of shoes up in your old room. Are you telling me that none of them are boots?"

"I'm not sure," she said, her brow furrowed in thought.

"I'll finish up here, go look," he said taking the towel from her.

Sure enough her snow boots that she'd had since high school were in her closet along with a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt that she could change into. She came down just as Jacob was finishing in the kitchen She let him help her into her jacket and she pulled on her gloves, not realizing that their dad's were watching.

"Where are you two headed off to?" Charlie asked.

"We're just going for a walk," Jacob said as he pulled his boots on.

"You two have fun," Billy said with a smile.

"We won't be gone long," Bella promised.

A light snow was falling as Jacob lead the way around the side of the house to the woods that they had played in ever since they were kids. The ground was dusted with snow and odds were that it wouldn't last long. Bella loved when it snowed; it brought her back to her childhood and having snowball fights with Jacob and their friends in the backyard and Sarah Black's famous hot chocolate. To this day she wouldn't drink hot chocolate if it didn't have Hershey's Syrup and jumbo marshmallows. And God forbid she saw someone make theirs with water because everyone knew that it was better with milk.

They followed the path through the woods that Charlie and Billy had spent an entire week clearing for them and now Jacob kept the path clear so that Bella could come out here whenever she wanted. These woods had been a safe haven for Bella and Jacob, a place that they could go when they wanted to be alone. He took hold of her hand, holding it loosely and she looked up at him, smiling shyly. She didn't know why he had suggested they come here, but she wasn't going to let the moment go to waste.

"Can I ask you something?" he asked, breaking the silence.

"Since when do you ask if you can ask me something?" she asked, giving him a weird look out of the corner of her eye.

"It's kind of important so I thought that it called for it," he explained.

"Go ahead," she motioning with her hand for him to continue.

"Have your feelings for me changed?"

"I'm still trying to figure them out," she said with a quiet sigh.

"So they have?"

She nodded, not able to meet his eyes. He stopped then pulled at her hand when she tried to keep going.

"Hey," he said gently.

"What?" she asked scared.

"It's okay that they've changed. I'd feel offended if they hadn't."

"Have yours?"

"I haven't made it obvious enough? he asked with a light laugh.

She shook her head, a teasing smile playing across her lips. She would have to be blind to notice the change in him. He nodded, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Okay then, maybe I need to make myself more clear," he said pulling her to him.

He leaned in, his lips on hers before she could react. Her startled gasp was cut short by his lips. His gloved hands cupped her face, the fabric scratching her chin but she was willing to overlook it. She ran her hands up the front of his jacket to wind her arms around his neck, pulling herself closer to him. He ran his tongue over her bottom lip, pleading for entrance and she conceded. The after taste of the cinnamon gum that he chewed after every meal filled her mouth and she smiled against his lips. His hands moved to her neck before deepening the kiss.

She felt like she was in an alternate universe. How had things changed so quickly? Did she want them to change? She pushed the thoughts aside and gave in to the kiss, right now she didn't want to think she just wanted to feel. And the feel of Jacob's lips on hers felt like the sweetest dream that she didn't want to wake up from. He pulled away, looking down at her, with a small smile.

"Why'd you stop?" she asked, her eyes fluttering open.

"Was that clear enough for you?" his voice low and deep.

"It was blatantly obvious," she confirmed.

"Good," he said before leaning down again.

This time he only brushed his lips to hers before pulling away. They made their way back, his arm draped over her shoulders and she was tucked under his arm, her head resting on his shoulder. They came out of the woods that way when Charlie caught sight of them from the kitchen window. He walked into the living room where Billy was still watching Sports Center.

"I think we need to have a talk with our kids," Charlie said with to get his attention.

"About what, Chief?" Billy asked, not taking his off of the TV.

"Something happened in the woods. I'm not saying that Jacob isn't good for her but I think that we have a right to know if things have changed that dramatically."

"You're right, you do," Bella said from the door.

"So there is something that you need to tell us?"

"There's nothing to tell other than we're still figuring it out," Jacob informed him.

"But there is a 'Jake and Bella' now?" Billy questioned, putting air quotes around their names.

"There is," she confirmed with a nod.

That was all they were going to tell their dad's for now. They had no clue where things were going or if they would go any farther than their one date and the moment that they had shared in the woods. If it didn't go farther than that they would figure things out from there.

XXXX

Bella pulled her hair out of the elastic that she had used to put it up with less than thirty seconds earlier with a sigh. She brushed her hair out, mentally shaking her head in aggravation. She knew that today was going to change everything for her and Jacob. She could feel it in her gut, but what she didn't know was if the change would be for better or for worse. She had gone most of her four years of college without contacting him, and it had been torture so she knew that being without him wasn't an option. Back then they had both been strapped for cash and hadn't been able to find the time to come and see the other. They'd made the most of her summer and Christmas breaks since she chose to see her mom for Thanksgiving and she would work through spring break since Easter had never been a big deal to either of her parents. Their friendship had resumed once she came home even though she was with Edward at the time.

She decided to just wear her hair down, slipping on a headband to keep it out of her face. She nodded with confidence when she got her hair just right. She went through her closet next because figuring out what to wear would take considerably longer than fixing her hair. She pulled out a heavy grey sweater studying it for a few seconds longer than she should have. It was pulled on before she could find some flaw in it that wasn't really there. She slipped on a pair of blue skinny jeans and a pair of black boots and closed her closet door quickly before she could change her mind.

Her front door opened and Jacob announced himself before walking down the hall. He took her in as she stood in the middle of her room, looking at the floor, nervously shifting from foot to foot.

"If what I'm wearing isn't okay I'm gonna need another twenty minutes," she said with a sigh, finally meeting his gaze.

"What you're wearing is great. You ready?" he asked with a smile.

She nodded, grabbing her cell phone, wallet and keys from off her nightstand before following him out the door. His truck sat next to her car in the parking lot of her apartment complex and he opened her door for her, something that she still wasn't used to since he had only started doing it in the last week. She turned to face him after he had started the truck and pulled out of his parking place.

"Are you going to tell me what we're doing?"

"I thought we'd go to Seattle since we haven't been in a while. Check out Pike Place Market, ride the Great Wheel, go to the Seattle art museum and then have dinner at Skypoint."

"Are you serious? Jake that's perfect," she said with a breathless laugh.

It was no wonder that he had told her to be ready by seven, he had the whole day planned. Her sweet, caring best friend had gone out of his way to plan a special day for just the two of them. They didn't do all that much without their friends or dad's anymore since their jobs required so much of their time. She couldn't wait to see what the day had in store.

The three hour ride was filled with conversation and laughter and a good dose of teasing when Jacob decided to sing along with the radio at the top of his lungs like an idiot. There wasn't a trace of tension, there had never been between the two of them because they knew each other so well. They arrived in Seattle sooner than Bella would have liked and they decided to get breakfast at the market. Since it was too early for the hot dogs from Taxi Dogs that Jacob wanted they settled on Three Girls Bakery and he got his bear claw fix. They spent most of the morning strolling through the stalls and specialty shops.

By the time they made it to Pier 57 the weather was a little warmer and the wind from that morning had died down so it was great weather for riding the ferris wheel when they decided to make their way to it. Bella got caught up with a small group of children who were throwing popcorn over the railing to feed the seagull's and pelicans on the rocks below the pier, buying them numerous boxes before Jacob was finally able to pull her away.

"Do you remember when we used to do that?" she asked, still watching them.

"Yeah, I also remember you almost falling over the railing a few times because you liked to lean over a little farther than my mom liked," he reminded her with a light chuckle.

"Oh shut up," she said smacking him playfully in the stomach.

He pulled her to him, her back against his chest, resting his chin on her shoulder, his arms wrapped around her waist. She turned her head to kiss his cheek, brushing her nose against his. He held her tighter, letting her watch the kids for a little while longer. He wished that the actual shops on the pier were open but it wasn't like they hadn't seen them before. He was finally able to pull her along after a couple of minutes of watching the kids play.

The wind had picked up again and he hoped that they would be able to ride the wheel since Bella had never ridden it before. He knew that this time would be less stressful and he more than likely would not throw up unlike his first time riding the wheel with Quil, Embry and Jared. The four of them had gone to Seattle for Quil's twenty-first birthday and spent a good part of the day at Fisherman's Warf getting drunk off of cheap beer when Quil had come up with the bright idea to ride the wheel. Everything had been fine until they actually got on the ride. The ride had started out normal until Quil, who'd always had a few screws loose decided that it would be funny to act stupid and shake the cart as best he could the whole time. By the time the ride had ended Jacob was so green under the gills that he hadn't been able to find a trash can in time so he had thrown up over the side of the pier while Embry laughed so hard that he lost his balance and fell on his ass while Jared shook his head in dismay, calling them all lightweights. The only thing that made the situation better was that Quil had joined Jacob in throwing up into the water below them.

By the time they reached the ferris wheel at the end of the pier Bella needed to sit down after walking for the past couple of hours. Jacob went to by their tickets while Bella sat on a bench close to the line of the ride. Jacob came back with a cup of coffee for her and she smiled gratefully, wrapping her hands around the warm cup. She leaned against him, letting him support most of her weight as they waited in line. Bella took the short wait to take in the wheel and the surrounding area. How far would they be able to see? Jacob didn't remember much other than puking his guts out from the night that happened less than a year ago.

When it came time to board the ride they were able to find a set of twins who couldn't have been older than sixteen who kept sneaking glances at Bella when they thought Jacob wasn't looking. Once they were in the cart Bella leaned against the glass wall her phone already out and she was taking pictures. She looked at Jacob over her shoulder giving him a easy smile.

"Thank you so much for this by the way," she said happily.

"You've already thanked me," he said with a laugh of dismissal.

"I might end up thanking you again later," she said, squeezing his leg gently.

Bella must have taken at least thirty pictures during the ten minute ride. Trying to talk up the boys across from them but neither of them weren't up for talking once they realized that Jacob and Bella were on a date. She smiled politely at them once they were off the ride before Jacob pulled her towards the pier entrance. The walk to the museum was short, and once inside Bella was thankful for the chance to finally be able to get warm. She wasn't freezing, but her fingers and cheeks were chapped from wind exposer.

Jacob led the way to the second level where he knew Bella would want to start. They had been here several times over the years for school related field trips and also his mom had been an art lover so she would take them here when they had the extra money. The gift shop was always the first place Bella wanted to go because she loved the variety of books that the museum carried. Jacob was left to his own devices since there was no pulling Bella away until she had looked through the entire section of books. He amused himself for the first ten minutes before growing bored. He found the aisle designated for toys and found what he wanted before making his way to wear she was.

Bella brushed Jacob off when he tried to get her attention but he would not be denied. She sighed in frustration before looking up at him from her place on the floor. He stood above her with a plastic light up gun aimed at her head.

"Are you done?" he asked seriously.

"Not yet," she said before going back to reading the sleeve of the book she was holding.

Before she knew what was happening a loud zapping sound filled the air and her head swiveled back to Jacob who still had the gun trained on her. It lit up once more and the sound coming from it was loud enough to draw attention of a woman at the end of the aisle.

"Jacob," Bella warned.

"Are you done now?"

"Five more minutes," she said before going back to what she was reading.

"Yeah, no," he said before pulling the trigger again.

"God in me," she said in frustration before standing up.

"Done?" he asked with a smile.

"Yes, since we're attracting a crowd and I don't want to get thrown out," she said with a sigh.

A sales associate met them at the end of the aisle closest to the registers.

"Sir, unless you're going to pay for that I'm going to need it back," The man said politely.

"It'll be the best ten bucks I ever spent," Jacob said with a nod.

"Very good," The associate said with a nod.

"Come on," Bella said sullenly.

After paying for the things they had found Jacob led the way to the elevators, pushing the button for the fourth floor.

"What's on the fourth floor?" Bella asked.

"You'll find out."

Once they were off the elevator he took her hand and after leading her down a hall they stepped into the European Art exhibit. She had always loved European art and they had some of the best and their take on Chinese art was so beautiful that she stared at it in awe of how spectacular it was. The tapestries were all elaborately done and she had to fight the urge to reach out and touch them. Jacob stood back letting her enjoy the moment for a few minutes before pulling her along to the escalators.

They rode down to the third floor and Bella was taken aback by the beauty of the art on display. Beautiful paintings of nature done by Japanese artist were spread throughout the small room and she walked through the room, stopping at pieces that caught her eye. Once she was finished Jacob told her that he had something to do but that he would meet her back on the fourth floor.

"Why are we going back to the fourth floor?" she asked confused.

"Just go up there," he said before pressing a kiss to her lips before walking away.

She took the escalator back up and sat on a bench not far from the European Art exhibit. Five minutes later Jacob came around the corner that led to the elevators with two tickets in his hands.

"What did you do?" she questioned.

"Come on," he said taking her by the hand and pulling her along with a gentle tug.

They stepped up to the doors of the special galleries where someone was only allowed entrance if they had tickets. Through the doors she could see Native American and Alaskan artifacts. She let go of Jacob's hand to link arms with him. He smiled down at her as he pushed open the door for her and she turned them in a circle so that she could take it all in. She tried to pull away from him so that she wasn't dragging him along with her but he tightened his grip on her arm to stop her.

They walked from exhibit to exhibit, taking their time to let it all sink in. Bella's favorite parts were the Native American pottery while Jacob enjoyed learning more about the warriors from the stories that he had heard as a kid from not only his dad but both of his grandfathers. Jacob ended up buying a catalogue about the exhibit to take home to his dad because he knew that his dad would enjoy it.

It was almost dusk when they finally left the museum for their reservations at Skycity Restaurant. Neither of them had eaten there but had taken a tour of the Space Needle as kids. They knew the restaurant was fancy but was also known for it's casual atmosphere so what they were wearing should be okay. Jacob rarely wore button down shirts unless he had to and he had actually taken the time to tuck in the white shirt he wore so that he wouldn't appear as sloppy even though Bella loved it when he wore his shirts untucked.

Jacob had called Sunday night, praying that they had an opening for at least one weekend in the next calender year; he would take any opening they had. He had been very surprised when he was informed that they had an opening for the next Saturday at six and he had jumped on it before some one else could snatch it up. He knew that this dinner was going to set him back at least two hundred dollars but he didn't care because Bella was worth it. He would do anything to make her happy.

They had to wait ten minutes for a table to open up but they didn't mind. They stood on the observation deck until the pager from the restaurant beeped to let them know that a table was ready. Jacob pulled out her chair for her and let her choose the wine that they would have, holding back a sigh of relief when she ordered it by the glass and not by the bottle. They looked over the menu in silence and he noticed her watching him once he sat his menu down.

"This place is really expensive Jake, are you sure we should be here?" she asked uncertain.

"Don't worry about that. I've got it taken of," he reassured her.

She smiled warmly at him, letting the subject go. She knew that he didn't have enough money to cover dinner without having to scrimp and save and possibly borrow money from his dad when his bills were due for the month until he got back on his feet. By the end of the night he would have spent close to a thousand dollars on her, that was including the six hundred from the weekend before and she couldn't let that go unnoticed. He didn't have that kind of money to throw around. He knew that expensive, grand gestures didn't matter to her, why was he doing this?

"I can see the wheels turning in your head," he said to get her attention.

"Sorry," she said with a sigh.

"I don't want you to worry about my money or lack thereof," he said gently.

"How can I not? You wouldn't be putting out all of this money if it weren't for me," she said, feeling guilty.

"I don't mind. I have a little money saved up so don't worry, I will not be broke. Just badly bent," he said with a shrug.

"Oh you're something, alright," she said with a teasing smile.

"Amazing? Is that the word you're looking for?" he asked with a grin.

Her smile widened and she hid it behind her hand, shaking her head, trying to hold back the urge to laugh. He took hold of her hand across the table and placed them on the table between them. He stared at her like she was the only other person in the room. No one other than Edward had looked at her like that. It made her feel completely different from the way it had felt with Edward. It felt genuine, like he wasn't asking for more other than her company. She found herself wondering for the hundreth time since everything had happened why she hadn't noticed him sooner or why these feelings were being pushed to the surface now.

All of her life Jacob had only been her friend, her kid brother and than in the blink of an eye because he had saved her when she needed him most it was like a veil had been lifted and she could see him for the person he really was and he was seeing her the same way for the first time.

"Can you promise me something?" she asked to get his attention after they had placed their food order.

"Sure," he said with a nod.

"You don't even know what it is," she said a dramatic roll of her eyes.

"Do you want to kill someone? Because if you than my answer is no, unless it's Edward. I'll gladly kill him if you want me to."

"Would you stop?" she said, throwing her head back in laughter.

"Sorry, continue," he said motioning for her go on.

"Will you stand by me when I'm a neurotic mess or stubborn? Will you promise to never say 'I told you so' when I do something stupid that you've warned me not to do?"

"I do that already, Bells," he said, giving her a concerned look.

"It's different now. Will you?"

"Yes, I promise," he said sincerely.

"Thank you," she said quietly, nodding her gratitude.

"I'm not exactly a dream to be around all the time either, ya know?" he reminded her.

"Yes, I know. If you can put up with my mood swings and rants than I will gladly except that sometimes your friends come first and I will never take your hot headed tantrums to heart," she promised.

"You know me so well," he said with a smile.

She did know him, better than most of his friends save for Embry and Quil who had been friends with him for almost as long as Bella had. Most of her friends from Forks were his friends and all of his friends on the reservation were her friends, she couldn't say that about any of her former boyfriends. No one from La Push had liked Edward, least of all Jacob. That should have told her how wrong the relationship was from the beginning. Billy hadn't even liked him and Billy liked everyone.

Their dinner finally came and they were content with the silence that fell over them. Jacob offered her bites of his tenderloin but he turned his nose up to her risotto because he was a 'meat eater, not a meat greeter', like she was. That earned him an eye roll but she smiled in spite of herself. She wasn't completely a vegan like she had been as a teenager, once she'd come to Forks to live with her dad at seventeen she had learned to appreciate a good burger, only when Charlie or Paul made them, of course. She didn't mind cooking it as long as she didn't have to eat it.

An hour later they were walking back to Jacob's truck, their bellies full and hearts light. The drive home was filled with conversation about their day while Bella went through the pictures she had taken throughout the day, posting at least a dozen of them on Facebook and Instagram. By the time she got home Jessica, Angela and Alice had texted her at least a dozen times. She ended up turning off her phone because she was tired of it buzzing every couple of minutes when they pulled up to her apartment building.

"Do you want to come inside?" she asked, turning to face him.

"I've got to work in the morning," he said regretfully with a shake of her head.

"Then I guess I'll see you at Sam and Leah's tomorrow night."

She unbuckled her seat belt than slid across the seat so that there were only a couple of inches between them. He unbuckled his seat belt before pulling her flush to him.

"You were too far away," he explained, his voice a low rumble.

Her eyes closed in anticipation of his lips on hers, her sigh was cut off by his lips. Her face was cradled in his hands, his thumbs brushing over her chin and her arms were around his neck. It was hot in the truck with the heater running but their shared body heat fogged the windows over. If Bella could climb into his lap without causing herself or him injury she would. His tongue caressed hers tenderly and she shuddered not able to hold it in. His hands moved down her arms to her hands, grasping them tightly.

She pulled back, her chest heaving, her forehead pressed to his.

"I should probably go inside. Jessica will be here in the next ten minutes if I don't call her back soon," she explained.

"I'll walk you up," he offered, opening his door.

She gathered her things and he helped her down from his side. He kissed her one last time once she had unlocked her door. She leaned against the door once she had closed it behind her. She turned her phone back on intent on calling Jessica and Angela in a three way call but her phone buzzed to let her know that she had a Facebook alert. She checked it to see a picture that Jacob had taken of them while they were on the ferris wheel. Overtop the picture was the caption 'best day ever'. She grinned as she typed a comment. _You're such a sap._ In the picture her head was on his shoulder with his head resting against hers and the Seatlle skyline expanded for what seemed like forever in the background. At least half a dozen people had liked the picture but she had been the first to comment on it.

She sent a quick text to Jessica and Angela letting them know that she would call them in the morning and to be ready by four the next afternoon to go to Sam and Leah's. Her phone chimed thirty seconds later because Jacob had commented on her comment to his picture. _But that's why you keep me around. Right?_ She laughed with a shake of her head as she typed out a quick reply. _Yep_. Ya figured me out._ lol_

She got in the shower, never hearing her phone ping a few minutes later. She was getting dressed when it pinged again ten minutes later.

_No comment from the peanut gallery? _Leah questioned.

Bella went back through her messages to see that her phone had blown up while she was in the shower. The picture now had ten comments and more than two dozen likes.

_Nope, Jake said it better than I could. 'Night._

She put her phone on silent before putting it on the charger and getting into bed. Sleep was not going to come easily since the day ran through her head on repeat. She smiled dreamily as she turned over on her back; she could think of worse ways to lose sleep. After another half an hour she finally felt like she was relaxed enough that she could fall asleep. She smiled one last time before finally letting sleep pull her under. She didn't know what tomorrow would bring but she could face it as long as Jacob was by her side.

**AN2: Anybody still reading this? This bad boy took me an entire day to write but it was so worth it. Hope you all enjoy reading it as much I enjoyed writing it. Only one more chapter to go!**


	4. Two is Better Than One

**Disclaimer:**

**Seth: Donna doesn't own Twilight y'all.**

**Me: 'Y'all'? Jasper you are not.**

**S: It's not like he coined the phrase, jeeze woman. **

**M: I also do not own the song that this chapter is named after it belongs to Boys Like Girls and Taylor Swift. Although the chapter is not based on the song.**

Sunday morning and early afternoon passed in a blur since Bella had so much to do before she went over to Sam and Leah's. She still had to grocery shop and when she was packing up her stuff to take over she found out that her best pie plate had a huge chip and crack in it so she would have to buy another one. Grocery shopping for a large crowd was not easy and she didn't think that the guys would mind that she had enlisted help as long as they got what they wanted. By the time she was ready to pick up Angela to drive over to Jessica's so that she could follow them it was after three.

Angela peppered her with questions about her night and Bella answered her questions freely, knowing that she would fill Jessica in the first chance she got. It would save Bella from having to tell the story a second time. No one had shown up at Sam and Leah's when they showed up and Sam was nice enough to bring everything in while Leah showed Bella how to start their grill.

"So, where's lover boy?" Leah teased, nudging Bella with her elbow.

"He's probably just getting home from work."

"Are things serious with you two?"

"I don't know yet, but it looks like it. Fingers crossed," she joked.

"You could do a lot worse than Jake. I'm not saying that I'm secretly in love with him or anything but he's a good looking guy."

"Yes he is," Bella agreed.

"Hey Bells, do you want these potatoes to go in the oven yet?" Angela asked from the back door.

"Wait another half an hour," she said with a shake of her head.

"Why exactly are they here? Not that I don't like having them over."

"To help me," she answered, not meeting Leah's gaze.

"Right," Leah said slowly, letting Bella know that she didn't believe her.

It wasn't exactly a a secret that Embry had a crush on Angela but since Angela was rendered clueless when it came to picking up on that type of thing it was up to Bella to give Embry a nudge in the right direction. He would thank her since she was pretty sure that Angela harbored a secret crush on him too.

People started arriving around the time that Bella put the steaks on and it wasn't long before a pair of arms slid around her waist.

"Why aren't wearing your jacket?" Jacob asked, his mouth inches from her ear.

"So that you would come out here and keep me warm," she said turning her head to kiss the corner of his mouth.

"Very sneaky, but smart," he said, smiling into her neck.

"Do I have to turn the hose on you two?" Leah asked from the back door.

"Please, we aren't as bad as you and Sam were when you first got together," Jacob said with a scoff.

"You two were all over each other," Bella reminded Leah.

"And look what it got us. We're married with a kid and another one on the way."

Bella swiveled out of Jacob's arms, giving Leah a questioning look.

"We were going to tell everybody tonight," Leah said with a defeated sigh.

"I'm gonna be a big brother!" Leah and Sam's son Jaymeson called excitedly from behind his mother.

"You two are adorable, don't let Misses Cynical tell you any different," Jessica said through the kitchen window.

"You hear that, we're adorable," Jacob said, poking Bella lightly in the stomach.

She laughed trying to get away from him. Leah shook her head not able to hide the small smile tugging at her lips before shutting the door. She picked up Jaymeson and carried him to Sam who took him willingly. Jaymeson had been a surprise and also the reason why Sam had asked her to marry him. She appreciated that Sam had wanted to do the right thing and to be honest they had talked about getting married not long before she found out but Sam hadn't had time to find her a ring. She wouldn't change her life for anything.

Jacob sat on the stairs watching Bella as she checked on the steaks one last time before deciding that they were done. He opened the door for her before following her in. The potatoes still had another twenty minutes and the the pie was out and the fridge was stocked with more beer than Bella had seen in her life. She sat at the kitchen table, looking into the living room where most of her friends were. Angela sat on the love seat with Jessica but she was deep in conversation with Embry who sat at the floor at her feet. Maybe she wouldn't have to give them that big of a nudge after all.

Jacob placed a soda in front of her before sitting next to her. He took her hand underneath the table, drawing circles on her palm with his thumb. Her chin rested in the palm of her free hand before she turned her head to face him. He continued to look forward until she squeezed his hand to get his attention.

"How was your day?"

"Long, not nearly as nice as yesterday," he said with a sigh.

"Yeah, it's gonna be a while before we can top yesterday. Did you go and see your dad before you came over?"

"Yeah. I had to make him dinner since Rachel's working and I've gotta go back later to get him settled for the night."

"Have you told him about us?"

"We talked while I was there," he said with a nod.

"Charlie called me first thing and wouldn't let me off the phone. I swear, I probably answered thousand questions," she said with a sigh.

"Well, he is a cop," he rationalized.

She rested her head on his shoulder he and draped an arm over her shoulders, kissing her temple as a way to tell her not to worry. Her dad had always liked Jacob, Charlie thought of him as his son, but things were changing and Jacob was taking on a different role in her life, one that Charlie would more than likely have at least one objection to. He never thought that anyone was good enough for his little girl and she was not looking forward to the line of questioning that Jacob would have to sit through.

Everyone ate outside since it was one of those rare nights where it was actually nice out even for February. Leah's mom and dad had let them borrow a few extra sets of fold out tables and chairs and Sam and Paul had set them up while every one else was inside. It had been a silent agreement between them all that Embry and Angela should sit together and the two of them seemed to be in their own little world just like they had been in the house. Everyone complimented Bella, Jessica and Angela on the food and when it came time to clean the kitchen Angela offered to do it. Embry helped gather the leftover food without Bella and Jessica having to ask him to.

"Look at him, he's so smart," Jessica said in wonder.

"He's not smart, he's whipped," Jared said with a scoff.

"He is not whipped," Bella disagreed with a shake of her head.

"It's about time," Leah said watching Angela and Embry walk through the back yard.

"Looks like our job is done," Jessica said holding her fist out to Bella.

Bella pounded fist with her and Jessica nodded her head once. No one could ever say that Embry was stupid, he was the most observant person that Bella knew other than herself. She knew from an early age that he was destined for great things and she got to see how talented he was everyday since he worked as a photographer for the paper. He was her closest guy friend after Jacob, always looking out for her even when he didn't need to.

A little while later once everyone had come back inside Bella got Embry's attention. He walked over to her with his hands shoved into his pockets.

"What's up?" he asked.

"How about you take Angela over to see your dark room? She'd love to see it," she suggested.

"I know what you're doing," he said, giving her a stern look.

"I have no idea what you're talking about" she said, shrugging innocently.

"Don't do that. We both know you're not as innocent as you seem. Thank you for the push," he said, pulling her to him.

"You're welcome," she said hugging him tightly.

"For the record, I've already asked her and we were about to leave when you asked me to come over," he said with a teasing smile.

"Can you give her a ride home?"

"Yeah. I haven't had that much to drink," he promised.

She let go of him, brushing her lips against his cheek before pulling away. She saw someone come to stand at her side a few seconds later and she knew instinctively that it was Jacob.

"Should I be worried about him trying to sweep you off your feet?" he joked.

"Easy tiger, he only has eyes for Angela. You know that," she said placing a hand on his chest.

"I've gotta take Seth home since he's too drunk to walk and I don't like the idea of letting Jess give him a ride. I told Leah not to let him drink," he said with sigh.

"What are you going to tell Sue and Harry when they ask?"

"That he got hold of a bad bag of pot. Don't give me that look, they know that he does it sometimes," he said shaking his head when she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Call me when you get home?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his neck.

He nodded, wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her closer. She leaned up on her toes to brush her lips to his but didn't pull away, letting him hug her until he decided to pull away. She looked across the room to see Jessica watching her with a knowing smirk. Bella gave her a confused look as she made her way across the room.

"What?" Bella asked in confusion.

"What?" Jessica mocked, hitting her lightly on the arm.

"Seriously, what?" Bella asked with a roll of her eyes.

"That lameo kiss," Jessica whispered aggressively.

"It was our first time kissing in front of anyone that we knew. I'm not big on public displays of affection, you know that," Bella argued.

"If I had a chance to kiss a guy who looked like Jake I would kiss him senseless in front of anybody who would watch. Plus, everybody was watching from the kitchen window and back door while the two of you were outside so it's not something that we hadn't already seen."

"All of you were spying on us?" Bella asked flatly.

"You really like it when he nuzzles your neck, it's totally obvious" Jessica said with a teasing smile.

"Keep it up and I am going to tell Seth that you're hung up on him," Bella warned.

"I am not, there is nothing wrong with a little harmless flirting," she retorted with a huff.

"Flirting? You don't touch a guy the way that you touch Seth if you are just flirting, Jess."

"He's too young," Jessica said sadly.

"He's nineteen and you're twenty three, not forty."

"It's just a crush, seriously," she whispered, and Bella didn't believe a word of it.

"I'm not saying that you need to jump his bones anytime soon but you need to stop lying to yourself. Give him a couple more years; by the time he's twenty one you'll be done with your master's and he'll be more mature and able to handle a real woman."

Bella knew that Jessica had had her eyes on Seth ever since they had met three years ago and at the time Bella had cautioned her friend not to do anything drastic. Over the past three years she had watch those feelings grow from crush to intrigue to infatuation and finally those feelings had settled into something between love and friendship, which was where she found herself so she could understand where Jessica was coming from.

Jessica linked arms with her and steered her through the house, they both said goodbye to everyone they passed. Bella waited until Jessica had started her car before pulling out of Sam and Leah's yard. They parted ways once they were off the reservation and Bella was home ten minutes later.

Bella was reading a magazine when someone knocked on her door after ten that night. She made her way down the hall slowly, not knowing what to expect. Who would show up this late at night? She didn't bother turning a light so she made her way through the living room in the dark. Her knee struck the edge of the coffee table and she hissed before cursing loudly. The doorknob rattled and her eyes shot to the door.

"Bells?" Jacob called from the other side.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, pulling herself together enough to limp to the door.

"I wanted to come by and see you before heading home," he answered through the door.

"So you drove twenty minutes in the opposite direction just to see me?" she asked opening the door.

"Yeah. Why didn't you turn on the hall light before coming through here?" he asked navigating the room with ease to turn on the lamp by the sliding door leading to her balcony.

"Because I didn't want anyone to know that I was home just in case you were a burglar. I did manage to grab my phone just in case I had to dial 911," she confirmed, holding up her phone.

"That doesn't look too bad, it probably won't even swell," he said, gesturing to the fading red mark on her knee.

"The pain is starting to go away," she answered, noticing the duffle bag slung over his shoulder.

"So you just came by to tell me goodnight?" she asked, folding her arms over chest.

"Ya got me," he said with a bashful smile.

"What if I said that I wasn't okay with you staying over?" she asked, feigning ignorance.

"Then I would counter offer that I could sleep on the couch," he informed her.

"Go put your bag in my room," she said, shaking her head with a roll of her eyes.

She grabbed them each a bottled water before going back to her room. He was in her adjoining bathroom brushing his teeth when she found him. She leaned against the bathroom door, her arms folded over her chest once more as she took him in. He was only wearing a pair of boxers and more than likely the tee shirt that he had been wearing under his sweater from that night. She looked down, taking in her white tank top and loose flannel pajama bottoms sending up a silent thank you that she hadn't gone with the unicorn tee shirt and her sleep shorts emblazoned with rainbows she had originally pulled out of her drawer.

Jacob turned off the water and placed his toothbrush in the toothbrush holder next to hers before turning around slowly. Bella still stood at the door but her arms were no longer folded. She pushed away from the door and came to stand in front of him. He pulled her to him with one arm, his free hand cupping her neck. He pressed his lips firmly to hers applying enough pressure to let her know what he wanted. She opened her mouth to him, letting him in without thinking twice.

He walked them out of the room, navigating his way to the bed, holding her to him so that she wouldn't fall without breaking the kiss. The back of her knees hit the bed and she pulled away quickly, breathless.

"What exactly do you expect to happen tonight?" she asked wide eyed.

"I don't know, I thought going to sleep would be a novel idea since I've got to be at work by eight and you have to be at work early too."

"That's all?" she questioned, giving him an unbelieving look.

"Okay, so maybe I thought that I could hold you while we slept but that was as far as I am willing to go," he answered honestly.

She laughed nervously before flopping down on the edge of the bed, she would have fallen off if Jacob hadn't caught her just in the knick of time. He sat next to her, his hand on her back. She should have known that he wouldn't have come over because he wanted sex. That wasn't the kind of guy he was and if he had coming over for sex he would have been straight forward, not giving her a chance to questions his motives. Her laughter continued making him wonder just what exactly she found funny.

"Are you high?"

"No," she said in between a fit of giggles.

"Did you have more to drink after I left?"

She shook her head quickly, trying to control herself. She couldn't help it if she laughed when put in awkward situations, he knew that.

"Did anything happen after I left?"

"I put in a good word for Seth with Jess," she said after taking a deep breath to calm herself.

"Aren't you just a little match maker? First Embry and Ange and now you're helping the kid out?"

"I told her to wait a few years. She wants more than he's willing to give her."

"Pretty and smart, I'm a lucky guy," he murmured.

They decided to get into bed once she had finally calmed herself down. At first it felt awkward to have him in the bed with her since they hadn't shared a bed or sleeping bag for that matter since she was twelve and their dad's decided that they were too old since she was rapidly approaching puberty. Jacob turned over on his side, scooting himself closer to her. She loosened up when she felt his body heat so close to her. She rolled onto her side to face him, pushing him onto his back before placing her head in the crook of his shoulder and tangling one of her legs with his. He sighed deeply, tightening his grip on her shoulders. She kissed his his neck before closing her eyes. Something told her that it would be easier for her to fall asleep tonight than it had been the night before.

**AN: Okay the rest is up to you guys. I had originally planned on this being the last chapter but I could be persuaded to write more if you all want. I'll leave the story as in-progress for a couple of weeks so that you all can let me know. If not, this is where it ends. Review, please!**


	5. Making Things Official

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. I am just playing with Stephenie Meyer's characters and plan on putting them back where they belong when I am finished…Even though it might take me a little while longer to give Paul back…I hope that she understands. I also do not own the TV show Sons of Anarchy, I have never seen it. I had to look up the rules for the drinking game online. Neither do I own the show Under the Dome either, but I never miss an episode unless I can help it. I also do not claim to know how long a baby anaconda is. Please do not take me seriously.**

**AN: Wow, a lot of you REALLY, liked this and wanted me to keep it going. I do aim to please so here is the next chapter for all of you to enjoy.**

**Warning: There is a smidge of lemon in this chapter. Just giving you fair warning.**

It had been three weeks since their first date and they still hadn't told their dad's what was going on. Jacob had been dodging questions left and right from Billy but Bella had been spared since Charlie had taken over the night shift at the station temporarily since his head deputy was on maternity leave for the next month. Charlie had called Bella several times while she was at work but taking personal calls when she was under a deadline was frowned upon.

Jacob spent a few nights out of the week at Bella's and they were still getting used to the others habits and quirks. Bella was working on being not so nitpicky about the fact that Jacob wasn't the cleanest person in the world while Jacob was trying harder to remember to pick up after himself.

Living together had been an easy decision. At the moment Jacob only stayed over three nights a week, when he didn't have to be up early the next morning for work. He brought his things over a little at a time and once he had found a place to store what he couldn't bring over he would be living with her fulltime.

Their friends had been patient and gave them the privacy that they deserved; all except for Embry. His daily visits to Bella's cubicle were more frequent and he had been relentless until Bella had given him enough answers to satisfy his curiosity. But that didn't mean that Bella couldn't get something out of the situation. By talking to him more frequently she had come to learn that he and Angela had gone on their first date a couple of weekends ago and had followed it up with two more. Things between them were progressing slowly but it was obvious to Bella that Embry cared a great deal for her best girlfriend.

It was also becoming obviously clear that she and Jacob had misjudged their feelings from the beginning. She found herself wondering how neither of them had caught onto the other's feelings sooner. Bella couldn't imagine her life without him in it and was so thankful that her feelings weren't one sided. She had fallen in love with her best friend, even if she hadn't told him that she loved him yet. Her life was playing out like a movie, the kind where you cheered for the heroine and good guy when they finally realized what the audience (their friends) had known all along, that she and Jacob were meant to be together.

A typical night when he stayed over consisted of Bella making dinner in one of his t-shirts and her favorite pair of jeans and her bare feet. They would sit on the couch with her feet in his lap while she worked on her laptop and he watched TV. Friday nights were date night and they traded weeks so that one could plan the date and the next week the other would.

One of her favorite things about him living with her was waking up next to him. She found herself staring at him while he slept. There had been mornings where she would put off getting out of bed until the last minute and find herself scrambling to get ready because she had been reluctant to leave him.

They had talked about taking their physical relationship farther but agreed not to rush things, they were content just fooling around and had been able to reign it in when things went too far. Jacob wasn't as strong as she was when it came to restraint and while she found it endearing, she knew that he wouldn't be patient for much longer.

XXXX

Jacob got to Bella's apartment just as she was getting out of the shower on Friday night. It was her week to decide what they did and she had yet to fill him in on what they would be doing. He entered the apartment to see steam billowing out of the bathroom.

"Bells?"

"Bedroom," she answered back, her voice muffled.

Jacob walked down the hallway to find Bella in her closet, wearing a pair of cut offs and an off the shoulder crop top sweatshirt that she'd had since high school. Her wet hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun as she reached for something on the shelf of the closet. He watched with amusement as she tried in vain to wrap a hand around the corner of the box that was just out of her reach.

Jacob crossed the room to stand behind her, pressing his body against hers as he reached for the box. His hand rested on her hip once she fell back against him. He handed her the box and she opened it to reveal a bottle of bourbon that his dad had given her on her twenty-first birthday.

"What's this for? You're not going to get me drunk and take advantage of me, are you? Because you don't have to; I'd like to remember our first time, thank you very much," he joked.

"Ugh, grow up. I thought we'd stay in tonight; order a pizza and watch Sons of Anarchy."

"You never want to watch Sons of Anarchy," he said credulously.

"We can play that drinking game that you and Quil always play," she offered.

"You'd be smashed three episodes in," he reasoned.

"Then we can make it interesting," she countered.

"I'm listening."

"We have the option of doing a shot or taking off an article of clothing."

"That violates the no sex rule," he said, giving her an even look.

"Tell you what, if you can behave yourself you just might make it to third base tonight," she whispered in his ear.

"Remind me what third base is again," he said, his voice low.

"Our hands," she said, placing one of his hands on her breast, "and mouths, in strategic places," she finished, cupping his jean clad penis.

He pulled away from her slowly, taking the bottle of liquor with him. He could feel an erection already forming and she had hardly had to try. Bella could be heard in the kitchen as she ordered pizza and the breadsticks that she knew he loved. She came in just as he was scrolling through Netflix on her TV.

"So, how does this game work exactly?"

"There are a few rules, you take a shot or remove an article of clothing whenever Gemma says the word shit, which she says a lot. Someone gets shot, something gets blown up or a fight breaks out."

Jacob decided to start from the beginning, that way he wouldn't have to explain the plot to her. By the time the pizza came half an hour later they had taken two shots already. Bella refused his offer to pay for the pizza since the night had been her idea.

Before he started the second episode Jacob took off his shoes and socks, warning Bella to do the same.

"Why?" she asked in confusion.

"Do you want to drink five times?"

"Seriously?" she asked with wide eyes.

"Yes, and for the record, your hair tie doesn't count."

"Each shoe and sock counts as one?"

"Nice try. Shoes count as one and your socks count as your second item."

She took off her shoes and socks that she had put on when he agreed to her terms earlier and pulled her sweatshirt over her head, leaving the crop top she had thrown on as an afterthought as cover up.

Two shots for her and three for him later the third episode started with a bang and he had ended up taking off his both of his shirts and he let her count her hair tie and watch since he didn't want her to be at a disadvantage so soon. Gemma lit into her son, whose name Bella couldn't remember and dropped at least three s-bombs.

"Aw man," she groaned, grabbing the bottle and pouring herself three shots while he lost his jeans and she poured him two.

"You'll never watch this with me again, will you?"

"Not like this, I'm seeing two of everything already," she said after downing her last shot.

"Just to warn you, you'll need to either lose the rest of your clothes or take four shots before this episode is over," he said with a smirk.

"But you'd only need to take off two items of clothing and take two shots," she said when she realized that he'd win either way.

"Do you want to forfeit now?"

She pulled her top over her head then shimmied out of her shorts with a resigned sigh. There was no way that she could drink another shot without having a hangover in the morning. It wasn't like she could help the fact that she was a lightweight.

Jacob turned off the TV, shrouding the room in darkness. Bella slid closer to him, her arm touching his, afraid to make the next move.

"Do you want to head back to the room or are you okay with staying in here?" he asked, his voice a deep rumble.

"Here's good, but could we turn on a light?"

Jacob stretched to reach the lamp on the side table, luckily he only had to touch it since it was a touch lamp. He tapped it twice to put it on its lowest setting before pulling Bella into his lap. He settled against the front of the couch, his legs stretched out in front of him. Bella placed her hands on his shoulders, trying to clear her head of the fogginess that the bourbon had caused. He ran a hand through her hair slowly, trying to take in what was about to happen.

He reached behind her to unclasp her bra and she let it fall to her wrist before finally letting go of his shoulders to flick the garment onto the couch. She drug a hand through her hair nervously as he continued to take her in. She had only been with two other guys so she didn't have that much experience to gather from. Riley had been her first everything and had been so sweet and gentle while Edward had been adventuress in the bedroom and hadn't liked it when Bella hadn't fell in line.

She sighed deeply, wishing that she could just get over herself. Fooling around should not be this complicated and she thought that the alcohol would help to loosen her up but it had had the opposite effect. She wished that she knew what Jacob was thinking. She watched him as his eyes roamed her body, staring at her in wonder. Well, that was a good sign. Feeling a little bolder, she leaned up to push her underwear down and kicked them off. She looked at him from underneath her lashes to see that his eyes had darkened and there was no mistaking the look of lust in his eyes. Okay, so maybe she had worried over nothing.

"Do you want to move to the couch?" she asked.

"It's too small," he said with a shake of his head.

"I din't know when I bought it that I'd eventually have a boyfriend who was freakishly tall and weighed over two hundred pounds," she teased.

"Ha, ha," he said with an eye roll.

She reached to run her hands down his chest to his stomach, which wasn't something that was out of the normal for her. She loved to run her fingers over the planes of stomach, memorizing every muscle to memory. This was his first time seeing her completely naked though, so she would allow him as time as he needed. One of her hands dipped into his boxers, which was unchartered territory for her. Thoughts of how long and how wide around he was had been swimming around in her head for over a week to the point that it had become a distraction at work.

He hissed when she wrapped her small hand around his erection. Her wide eyes met his and he smirked, knowing that neither of the guys she had been with compared to him size wise.

"Holy crow," she said in astonishment.

Not able to hold back his laughter, Jacob chortled at her reaction.

"It's not funny, I'm probably gonna be split in two the first time we have sex,"

"I highly doubt that, since it's never happened before. We'll just have to practice until we get it right," he said, shrugging his eyebrows suggestively.

"Yeah, you'd like that," she said with a light laugh.

"It's not like you wouldn't be getting anything out of the deal," he said with a shrug.

"Hold on, why am I the only one completely naked?"

"Because I didn't want to scare you off with my anaconda," he said with a wide grin.

"I highly doubt that it is as big as an anaconda."

"Okay, maybe a baby anaconda."

"I'll be the judge of that," she said, taking hold of the hem of his boxer briefs.

She held her breath as she pulled his underwear down. The tent that his erection made in his shorts had thrown her off but once it had sprung free her eyes widened not in wonder but fear. There was no way that Jacob's size could be considered normal. It jutted out proudly from his body, precum leaking from its tip. Her hand was still wrapped around it and it felt smooth, yet hard under her hand. She tried to control her reaction so that she wouldn't worry him but she didn't do a good job of it.

Jacob placed a hand on her shoulder before she finally pulled her eyes away from his erection. She hadn't realized that she had stopped breathing until he said something about it. She sucked in a shallow breath, not wanting to overdo it.

"Talk to me," he said, worried.

"That is the biggest penis I have ever seen," she said shakily.

"Well, thanks. But I'm more worried about you," he said, his eyebrows furrowed together.

"Maybe I should be on the bottom for the first couple of times."

"That would be best, but we'll worry about that when the time comes."

"Does it hurt?"

"Only when I have blue balls, which I'll probably have in the next couple of minutes if you keep your hand on it," he said with a nervous laugh.

"Have you ever measured it?" she asked, her hand slowly stroking him.

"Like to see how long it is? Quil started talking about how his was the biggest among Embry, him and me and to shut him up we measured them. Not in front of each other, that would have been weird. Anyway, Quil's the smallest of the three of us and I'm bigger than Embry."

"How did you know who was lying and who wasn't?"

"Can we not get into that?" he asked, embarrassed.

"Quil pantsed y'all, didn't he?"

"Actually, no."

"So how big is it, exactly?"

"Twelve and a half inches," he said with an affirming nod.

Her hand kept a steady rhythm as his head rested on her shoulder. He kissed her neck, just behind her ear where he knew that she was most sensitive. He was surprised that her hand could fit all the way around him, he hadn't thought that she would be able to. He knew that it was too soon to ask for a blow job but one day, when she felt more comfortable he hoped that she would give him one without him have to ask.

He pushed on her shoulder to signal for her to lie down and she let go of him before doing as he asked. His eyes raked over her one more time, not sure where he wanted to start first. Her breast were the perfect size to fit into his hand, they weren't too small or too big, they were just right in his eyes. Her taught stomach led down to narrow hips and toned legs that he couldn't wait to have wrapped around him.

His fingers blazed a trail down her neck, stopping to roll her nipples between his fingers until they were puckered nubs. Moving on, his fingers ghosted a trail down her side, causing her to flinch away from him with a giggle. Her laughter quieted when one of his fingers slipped into her folds. Her hands made their way back to his erection, one pumping in a steady motion while the other fondled his balls. He kept the pace slow and so did she as the got lost in the feeling of their hands on the others body.

Jacob rested his weight on one arm before leaning down to take one of her taught nipples into his mouth. She moaned softly, arching her breast to meet his mouth. He added a second finger, making a scissor motion to open her more. She hissed in pain until his tongue swirled over her areola, taking her mind off of the pain. Her grip on his erection tightened and her movements quickened, hoping to bring him release faster.

"Relax, it's not a race," he said against her breast.

"So it wouldn't matter if I came twice but you only came once?"

"I would take it as a compliment," he said, pulling her nipple back into his mouth.

Her head fell back against the carpet as she let the feeling of his hands and mouth on her body wash over her. One of her hands fisted in his hair as she found herself arching herself off the floor to meet his fingers and tongue. Her hand on his erection pumped lazily up and down but he didn't seem to mind. He added a third finger, pressing it to her button while he crooked the other two to hit her pleasure spot. She keened, making him smile around her nipple.

"Cocky Son of a Bitch," she said with a sigh.

He pulled away so that he was staring down at her.

"I've never had a complaint before, so yeah; I am. But don't worry, I'm sure you can keep up."

She smiled up at him with a shake of her head. She could feel her orgasm building and she knew that she wouldn't last much longer. He leaned down to capture her lips in a bruising kiss. Her breath hitched as her orgasm washed over her and her hand in his hair gripped a little tighter and he moaned into the kiss. He pulled away breathless to look down at her. Her face was flushed, her chest was heaving and most importantly, she looked satisfied. Pride swelled in his chest as he realized that he was the cause of that look. He had pleasured her and she had enjoyed it, more than enjoyed it by the looks of things.

"Roll over," she said once she was able to speak.

He did as she asked without thinking twice. She rest her weight on one arm as she resumed giving him a hand job. He rest one hand on her arm while the other went behind his head. Her eyes locked on his with an intense stare as she continued her steady rhythm. He could feel tension building in his stomach and new that he was close. They had all night to get better aquainted with each other's bodies. He couldn't believe that she trusted him enough to even consider going as far as they had gone in the past half an hour. Most of the alcohol that they had consumed had worn off and both of them were sober enough to be in the moment.

His seed exploded into her hand, onto her arm, and his stomach as he came with a deep moan. His eyes drifted closed as she leaned down to place her head on his chest.

"That show that you like so much, does it have a drinking game?"

"Under the Dome? I'm not sure, but we can make one up."

"How about every time Big Jim points a gun at somebody we have to drink or strip?"

"I'd be hammered halfway through the first season," she said with a giggle.

"You'd better put on some extra layers then," he said, wrapping his arms around her.

"I need sleep, and water and maybe some asprin close by for when I wake up in the morning," she said with a groan.

"We're adults, whose gonna care if we sleep here?"

"Not me. Let me grab a water and a blanket. Are you gonna need a pillow?"

"What about you?"

"Haven't you figured out by now that you're my favorite pillow?"

"Grab me one," he said before letting go of her.

She came back with a blanket and a pillow and a water for each of them along with a bottle of Tylenol. She settled down next to him once he had situated the pillow the way that he wanted it. She lay on her side next to him with her head resting in the crook of his neck.

"'Night," she said, kissing his cheek.

"G'night," he said before closing his eyes.

They shut out the noise of the outside world and were asleep within minutes. They didn't need much as long as they had each other.

XXXX

The house that Bella had grown up in stood before them with both of their father's trucks in the driveway and the street in front of the house was like a parking lot. It was only a preseason Mariners game, why was her dad making a big deal out of it? Bella and Jacob had planned on telling their dad's their plan to move in together and answer whatever questions they had.

Bella hadn't seen her dad in almost two weeks. There had been a peeping tom scare, a domestic dispute between a couple who fought on a regular basis and a missing teen that had taken up Charlie's time and Bella had understood.

Charlie and Billy deserved to know what was going on before anyone else but that hadn't been the case. They wanted to tell the two of them together and that had been problematic. With Leah, Jessica and Quil's inquisitive natures and Embry's persistence it was only a matter of time that the four of them started asking questions. For the record, Quil had been the first to cave and since it wouldn't have been right to tell him and not tell Embry Jacob had told them both at the same time.

Jacob pulled a reluctant Bella up the walkway and into the loud, over crowded house. Billy was the first person to see them and he lifted his can of beer in greeting. Jacob motioned with his head for him to come with them as they went in search of Charlie. Bella found him upstairs on the phone and waited somewhat patiently for him to get off the phone. She alternated between shuffling nervously from foot to foot and pushing her hair behind her ears repeatedly.

"Hey stranger," he teased, pulling her in for a hug.

"Hey. Is there a place where you, Jake, Billy and I can talk?" she asked once she pulled away.

"It is pretty crowded, huh?"

"Just a little."

"Let's go out back."

Charlie led the way and Jacob took hold of Bella's hand at the bottom of the stairs before following their dad's down the hall. Bella greeted people as she passed with a pensive smile. She was more than a little nervous about telling her dad the truth. The last time she had confessed that she was moving in with a guy it hadn't gone over well at all. She hoped that this time would be different.

Outside, it was chilly with the wind causing the flimsy trees that Charlie had planted the previous spring to sway in the breeze. Jacob took off his jacket and draped over Bella's shoulders before shoving his hands in his pockets.

"We have something that we need to tell you," Bella broached.

"So there's a 'Jake and Bella' for sure, now?" Billy questioned.

"Yeah," Bella answered, nodding quickly.

"You aren't pregnant, are you?" Charlie asked.

"It would be okay if you were," Billy interjected.

"For you maybe," Charlie mumbled.

"I'm not pregnant. We've only been dating a month," Bella confirmed.

"We're going to be moving in together, in the near future." Jacob stated.

"We're being smart about it and we're taking things slow," Bella promised.

"I guess that's okay," Charlie said with a nod.

"You haven't moved in yet?" Billy questioned.

"No, I'm staying over a few nights a week and I bring a little over at a time. Since Bella only has a one bedroom apartment I'll need to find a place to store most of my stuff."

"The garage is free if you think you fit it all in there," Billy offered.

"You wouldn't mind?"

"Of course not, Son. It'll give you a reason to come over more often since you won't be living on the res."

"Dad?" Bella asked Charlie expectantly.

"I'm okay with it, but I would like to talk to Jacob alone."

"Just let me help her get him back inside," Jacob said, taking the chair from the front while Bella lifted from the back and they gently carried the chair up the stairs and into the house.

Bella took hold of Jacob's hand as he turned to head back out. His eyes met hers and she smiled reassuringly. She squeezed his hand tightly before letting go. His mouth turned up in one corner to give her a lazy smile that made her weak every time she saw it before closing the door behind him.

She went into the kitchen to grab a bottled water only to run into Embry as she turned around. She gasped as she fell against him.

"I should know better than to sneak up on you," he said apologetically as he held onto her arms so that she wouldn't fall.

"It's fine, did you need something?"

"Just wanted to show my support. I've noticed a change in Jake the past few weeks. You know that he took Amanda's dumping him last year pretty hard, but he hid a lot from you," he admitted.

"Like what?" she asked, her face a combination of hurt and confused.

"He wouldn't let anybody in. He held people he'd known half his life at a distance. Quil and I saw through it and we wanted to tell you but he wouldn't let us."

"Why?" she asked quickly.

"Can't I be the one to tell her that?" Jacob asked from the arch of the kitchen.

"You've had three weeks to tell her," Embry argued.

"I never should have been left in dark in the first place. I reached out to you after Amanda left and you told me that you were fine. You lied to me, and you drug Embry and Quil into it," she said, seething.

She didn't want to make a scene but if the two of them didn't give her some breathing room she would not be responsible for what happened.

"Back up, Em," Jacob said gravely.

Embry walked out, casting a worried look in Bella's direction before entering the living room.

Bella brushed passed Jacob and up the stairs and followed behind her.

"Leave me alone," she pleaded as she stepped into her old room.

"I can't apologize if you won't let me," he said with a firm shake of his head.

Bella sat on the bed with her head in her hands. Jacob and Amanda had dated on and off for almost a year before Amanda had broken things off for good and moved out of town. Bella was still reeling from her breakup with Edward that had happened less than six months before and she had tried to be there for Jacob but he had been insistent that he was fine.

Jacob sat next to Bella, giving her a little space so that she could pull herself together. After a couple of minutes she turned her head to look at him.

"Why did you lie to me?" she asked, broken.

"I didn't want you to worry. You had enough problems of your own, I didn't want to add mine on top of them."

"All I wanted to do was help you and you shut me out. What's to say that you're not going to do it again?"

"I swear to you, that it won't happen again," he promised.

"That's a pretty flimsy promise," she said, wiping unshed tears from her eyes.

"I am so, so, so sorry. I care for you too much to shut you out again."

"What happened? After Amanda left?"

"It was like somebody had flipped a switch and my whole world went dark. I felt like she had taken a huge piece of me with her and I was struggling to put the pieces back together. I had trust issues for months after she left. Embry and Quil tried to get me to see reason and convince me to tell you what was going on but I didn't want to burden you. You were just starting to act like yourself again."

"Is that everything?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah."

"Okay," she said with a slow nod.

He turned to face her before closing the gap between them. She sighed deeply before turning to face him. He took one of her hands in his before closing the distance and placing his forehead to hers.

"Can you forgive me?"

"Mm-hmm," she said, worrying her bottom lip.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

Bella pressed her lips to his in a gentle kiss, cupping his neck with her free hand. Jacob pulled her bottom lip between his teeth, biting gently before gliding his tongue over her lip to soothe it. There was a knock on the door and they pulled apart to see Sue standing in the hall.

"The food's ready. We're all waiting for you to come down so that we can eat," she said gently.

"We'll be right there," Bella promised.

Sue nodded with a small smile before walking away. Bella hit Jacob's arm with a hard thump, making his head shoot up in surprise.

"You forgot to shut the door," she said accusingly.

"I'm sorry, I was more worried about calming you down," he said defensively.

"Come on," she said, pulling on his hand as she stood.

What happened upstairs was put behind them and they parted ways to talk to their friends. Embry heaved a silent sigh of relief, glad that they had been able to work things out. Hopefully, he wouldn't be dragged into the middle of things again because he hated keeping things from the people that he cared about.


	6. Looking Into the Future

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. But I wouldn't complain if Stephenie Meyer decided to share.**

**AN: I can't believe that I keep letting time lapse in between updates. I have no excuse other than being a knucklehead. Sorry guys.**

In the week following Bella and Jacob's drunken encounter things had come to a complete standstill sexually. Every time they were intimate Bella would imagine being split in half the first time they had sex. Jacob was patient but he was not a saint, he could only hold out for so long and Bella hoped that she would be over her hang-ups before then. Jacob was the poster child of the perfect boyfriend. Bella knew that she had nothing to fear because he would never push her before she was ready which made her guilt over the situation even worse.

She needed another woman's perspective and she knew exactly who to go to. She made plans for them to go over to Sam and Leah's for dinner and she would not leave until she had voiced her fears to Leah. Leah was the one person that she knew who would not shy away from the conversation and would be honest with her. She was not looking for to Leah's brash way of telling the truth but she needed to get over herself and put her fears behind her.

The drive to Sam and Leah's was silent, Jacob knew that something was up but he didn't press for an explanation. He knew that Bella would tell him what was wrong when she was good and ready and not a moment before. He turned to look at her once they had pulled into the Uley's driveway before turning off the car. Bella looked at him out of the corner of her eye to see him watching her curiously.

"I love you," he said with a crooked smile.

"Love you too," she murmured with a whisper of a smile.

He turned off the engine and got out of the car, meeting her around the front of the Rabbit. He took her hand in his, knotting their fingers loosely. Sam opened the door as they were walking up the stairs and greeted them with a nod and a small smile. Jaymeson could be heard, playing in the living room and Leah could be heard praising him for what he was doing. Sam took off down the hall towards the kitchen and Jacob followed him wordlessly. Bella sucked in a deep breath before walking into the living room.

Jaymeson sat at his child sized drum kit, banging on the symbols as Leah clapped along to the beat. Leah tossed Bella a quick smile over her shoulder when she sat on the couch next to her. Jaymeson continued to play, content to be in his own little world. After a few minutes he decided that he'd had enough and ventured off to see what Sam and Jacob were doing.

"Sorry, he has been insisting that Sam and I listen to him play more and more lately," Leah said in apology.

"It's fine. Do you think that I can talk to you about something without you making it weird?"

"Is it something personal?"

"Yeah."

"Then I promise to openly honest and to not make it weird," she said sincerly.

"I'm scared to be intimate with Jake," she said, embarrased.

"Has he done something to make you think that he doesn't have the truest of intentions?"

"No. Things got heated last weekend and I saw him naked for the first time. I've never seen one...that big."

"He has a huge shlong?" Leah asked, quirking an eyebrow in interest.

"You promised not to make this weird," Bella said, giving her an even look.

"I'm sorry, continue," Leah said in mock seriousness.

"I couldn't even wrap a hand around it when I gave him a hand job. How the hell am I supposed to fit it into my mouth, much less my vagina?!" she whisper shouted so that the men and child in the next room wouldn't hear her.

"I'm going to be honest with you because you're my friend so do not take this personally but you need to get over yourself. Jake would never do anything to hurt you. You haven't talked to him about this, I know you haven't. But I'm glad that you came to me first so that you don't freak him out and make him think that you don't want him in that way. Think of this as your first time having sex, he's going to need to stretch you as much as he possibly can. Lube will help, so don't be afraid to use it the first few times. If you're uncomfortable just tell him, I'm sure that he'll understand and he'll wait until you're ready. This is Jake were talking about, not some random guy that you've just met."

Bella nodded, knowing that Leah was right. She needed to tell Jacob what was going on. He would understand, he wouldn't think any less of her for being scared. She smiled her thanks to her friend before standing to go into the kitchen. Sam had gone upstairs, leaving Jacob alone with Jaymeson. Jaymeson sat in his booster seat coloring and talking to Jacob. Jacob listened intently, answering the little boy when it was called for. Bella smiled, watching them interact. How could she have ever thought that Jacob would hurt her?

XXXX

Jacob could hear laughter filtering out of the apartment before he had opened the door. Apparently, they had company. He took off his jacket, hanging it up on the coat rack by the door before toeing off his boots. He followed the laughter and voices to the kitchen and was surprised to see Alice Cullen sitting across from Bella.

"Hey," Bella said happily, tossing him a smile.

"Hey, yourself," he said, leaning down to kiss her temple.

She sighed, staring up at him with a dreamy smile. Alice watched them interact quietly. She had never seen Bella this happy, not even when she was with Edward. Bella hadn't brought Jacob around to the Cullen house all that much while she and Edward were together because Edward hadn't gotten along with Jacob and out of respect for Bella and Edward's relationship, Jacob had made himself scarce. Alice watched him intently, trying to remember anything that she could about him. She remembered that he was a nice, genuine guy who would move moutains for her female best friend. She guessed that she couldn't be mad at him for moving in on her brother's ex-girlfriend if he treated her that well.

"Alice, you remember Jacob, don't you?"

"Vaguely, hi," she said politely.

"Hi," Jacob said with a polite nod before grabbing a bottle of soda from the fridge.

"Alice just came by to drop off my invitation to her wedding and to catch up," Bella informed him.

"That's fine. She can come over whenever she likes," he said with an easy smile before sitting in between them.

The two friends continued talking and Jacob relaxed, seeing Bella happy made him happy, so he wasn't going to deny her something that made her happy.

"It's been, what? Five years since I last saw you?" Alice asked Jacob.

"That sounds about right," Jacob said with a nod.

"You were just a scrawny kid with long, gangly legs and arms back then," she said, shaking her head as she took him in.

"The rest of me finally caught up," he said with a light laugh.

"I'd say so," she agreed, giving him a cursory once over.

Alice turned her attention to him, getting to know him while Bella started dinner. Over the next two hours Alice and Jacob talked and laughed. Bella was glad that the two of them were making an effort to get to know each other.

XXXX

Sunday night was spent at Billy's that week since Billy wasn't feeling well enough to travel the short distance to Charlie's. Bella got a pot of homemade chicken noodle soup started while the other three watched a movie in the living room. Once she had the soup going and she had cleaned the kitchen she went into the living room to sit on the floor in front of Jacob where he sat with his dad on the couch. His fingers carded through her hair on their own accord as she leaned her head to rest against his leg.

Charlie watched them interact, having so many questions that needed answers. He knew that Billy had questions of his own. Once the movie was over Charlie turned off the TV before someone could suggest watching something else. He cleared his throat to get the other three's attention before leaning forward to place his hands on his knees.

"How serious are things between the two of you?" he questioned.

"We're living together Dad, that pretty much explains everything."

"So the two of you have been...ahem, intimate?" he asked, uncomfortably.

"Dad!" Bella exclaimed, her face red with embarrassment.

"Things haven't gone that far Charlie, not yet," Jacob admitted, looking down at the floor.

"Really?" Billy asked, credulously.

"Never in a million years did I think that we would have this conversation with our dad's," Bella said, her voice muffled by one of her hands covering her face.

"I think that I have a right to know what his intentions are towards you," Charlie said in defense.

"His intentions? Are we in the 1940's?" Bella asked, shaking her head in embarrassment.

"Bells, it's fine. I hope to marry her at some point. Not in the near future, but maybe in a few years. If that's okay with you," Jacob clarified.

Bella pulled her hand away from her face slowly, and turned her upper body around to look at Jacob. Had he just asked Charlie's permission to marry her? They hadn't talked about marriage. Yes, she would love to marry him but she would like to have talked to him about it before he asked Charlie for his permission.

"Well, I guess that would be alright," Charlie said after half a minute of silence.

"Now that that is out in the open I say we let the topic go since Bella looks as red as a tomato," Billy said with a playful smile.

Bella scoffed before smacking his leg playfully. Jacob pulled Bella onto the couch with them and scooted over to make room for her. She folded herself against him, resting her head on his shoulder. He rested his head against hers, taking her closest hand in his and lacing their fingers together. He should have known that their dad's would shanghi them. They should have been honest with them sooner and not kept them in the dark for so long. He was surprised that had held out as long as they had.

XXXX

Bella made a point to go out to lunch with Jessica and Angela at least one Saturday a month. They spent the day shopping and getting caught up on each other's lives before going out to lunch at their favorite Port Angeles restaurant. It started out like every other time they had had a girls day but it quickly turned into a gab fest about their respective guys. Jessica and Angela grilled her about Jacob and where things stood with them. Angela was a little reluctant to talk about Embry at first but Jessica was able to pry a little infomation out of her.

"We've only gone out on a couple of dates. And I went to the Govenor's Ball with him to help him take pictures, so that doesn't count as a date," Angela informed them.

"What's the hold up? He's freaking gorgeous and it's obvious that he's into you," Jessica pointed out.

"He has more going for him than just his looks Jess and I think Angela is aware of how much Embry likes her," Bella reasoned.

"We want to take things slow," Angela said, looking down at her hands.

"Has he at least kissed you?" Jessica questioned.

Angela bit her lip, not able to hide a smile before nodding.

"Now we're getting somewhere! Is he any good?" Jessica prodded.

"Jess, leave her alone, this is obviously making her uncomfortable," Bella said, taking up for Angela.

"Okay then, how things with you and Jake?" she asked, shrugging her eyebrows suggestively.

"Man," Bella said with a cluck of her tongue, not able to hold back a groan.

"Come on, I have to live vicarously through the two of you since I don't have a guy of my own. The least you can do is give me a few juicy details."

"Things with Jake and I are fine. Great, even. He is the world's most perfect roommate. I couldn't ask for a better boyfriend," Bella said with a shrug.

"See, was that so hard?"

"You just wait until you and Seth are together, we aren't going to use kid gloves with you. We're not going to forget this," Angela warned.

Jessica clammed up, wringing her hands in her lap. Bella nodded, agreeing with Angela. She should have known that bringing up Seth would make Jess shut up. That wasn't going to work forever, but she planned to use it for as long as she could.


End file.
